I Only Want One

Chapter 20

Natalie

I crack my eyes open, squinting at the harsh light shining in the room. I groan a little, lifting my hand to rub it against my face as I try to come back into reality. I roll to my side, my whole body protesting the small movement.

"Sunshine?" I hear Eli's worried voice as it pierces through the haze of confusion and exhaustion.

"Eli?" I croak, my throat sore and dry.

"Yeah, baby. Can you open your eyes?" He asks, a hint of desperation to his tone that has me worried.

I blink a few times before I'm able to focus on him. His bright blue eyes look worried, dark circles present under them making me wonder how long has passed. In an instant, the memories from the fight come back to me. Killing Corinne's mate.

Jude.

"Jude. Is he...?" I ask, not able to finish the question, too horrified of the answer I may get.

"He's alive, Nat." Eli says with a grim expression. I push myself up on the bed, wincing at the movement. My whole body feels sore for some reason.

"What does that mean, Eli?" I ask and he sits next to me, handing me some water as he runs his fingers through my hair.

"He was hurt pretty bad. He still hasn't woken up and we don't know what shape he's gonna be in when he does." He says and I feel how heartbroken he is through our bond.

"Take me to him. Please." I ask, my eyes wide and pleading. Eli takes a big breath before looking up at me.

"You sure?" He asks and I nod, throwing my arms around his neck and burying my face into him.

"It's my fault. I'm so sorry, Eli." I whisper, choking back my tears. Eli sighs again and rubs my back.

"You didn't do anything wrong, sunshine. Things weren't looking good, baby. If you hadn't used your power, we probably would have lost our pack." He says gravely and I gasp, looking up at him.

"Really?" I ask and he nods.

"From what we can tell, it was more than one pack. But we can talk about that later. Let's get you to Jude." He says, standing up and putting his arms gently under my legs and around my back.

He lifts me and carries me to the room right across from mine. Jude is laying in the bed, his feet almost sticking over the end of it. He's asleep, his head slightly elevated and dark bruising around his neck. A little sob escapes me when I see him. I reach for him as soon as Eli brings me close enough.

"Can I touch him?" I ask and he nods.

"Yes. He's healed quite a bit since we brought him in." He says and I reach out to run my hand down his face. He lets out a little whimper at my touch and another tear tracks down my face.

"Can I lay with him?" I ask, looking up at Eli with pleading eyes.

"Of course, sunshine." He murmurs with a sad smile.

He sets me down gingerly in the bed and I tuck myself into Jude's side. I breathe in his scent, pulling myself as close to him as I can get.

"Oh, good. You're awake. It will be good for you to be close to him. A mate always helps healing." The pack doctor says as she walks in the room.

"How long do you think it will be until he wakes up?" I ask nervously.

"There's no way to know, Natalie. Just stay with him as much as you can." She says, eyeing Jude sadly before checking the machines and leaving the room.

I snuggle up into Jude, reaching over to hold his hand. He stirs a little and hope wells in me, but he settles back down into sleep. Eli rounds the bed and sits in a chair on Jude's other side, heaving out a heavy breath.

"I'm sorry, Eli." I say quietly and he looks over at me.

"It's not your fault, sunshine." He says and I shake my head.

"I'm sorry I left you to deal with this alone." I say and he gives me a sad smile, reaching out to put his hand over mine.

"Everything will be just fine, baby. Jude will bounce back from this. He's too stubborn not to." Eli says.

"I'm not stubborn." Jude's gravely voice rings through the room and I gasp, looking up at him. His eyes peek open before looking down at me.

"Hey, sunshine." He says with a grin. His arm tightens slightly around me and I smile up at him, a relieved breath slipping from me.

"You had me worried." I say, sitting up to eye him properly.

"I'm fine." He says, lifting his arms slightly. He frowns down at them, before looking back at me.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Maybe I'm not fine." He says. "My body feels weird." He says and Eli runs to the door to call for the doctor.

"Jude? What do you mean?" I ask just as the doctor enters the room.

"See? I told you mates help with healing." She says with a bright smile before she realizes we're not celebrating.

"My body feels weird, doc. Like I can't move it very well." Jude says and a boulder takes up residence in my stomach as I watch the doctor examine him.

Eli picks me up, pulling me into his chest as the doctor has Jude try to move his limbs in different directions. He looks like he's moving in slow motion, like he's underwater and trying to push through the waves.

"There may have been dome damage to your spinal cord. We will watch you for a couple more days and see how you progress." She says.

"Will he be okay?" I ask and Eli tightens his arms around me.

"Of course I'll be alright, sunshine. Get back over here and snuggle me into good health." He says with a smile, but he can't hide his concern from our bond.

Eli sits me back next to Jude in the bed and I wrap my arms around his neck, pressing my lips to his.

"I'm sorry, Jude. I should have stayed in the house. I should have listened to you." I start to ramble but Jude quiets me with another kiss.

"If this is anyone's fault, it's mine. Don't worry, Nat. Everything will be fine." He says, pressing a kiss to my forehead before looking over at Eli.

"What happened with the fight?" He asks.

"We lost a few lives. Mom and Dad are visiting the families, dealing with the funerals. It looked bad there for a minute. Until Nat used her gift." He says and Jude's eyes widen.

"You used your gift?" He asks and I nod.

"She's fucking powerful, Jude. She killed every wolf in that pack. I watched it. It was like they couldn't breathe." Eli says and my mouth gapes in shock at his words.

"I had no idea I could do that." I say and Eli nods.

"They were all in excruciating pain. The only ones left are the Alpha and Corinne." He says and Jude snarls.

"I kill her myself." He growls and Eli nods.

"Sure. If that's the motivation you need to get better." Eli taunts a little and Jude huffs at him, but I'm barely listening as I digest this new information.

"I didn't realize your power had grown so much." Jude says gently and I shake my head.

"I didn't either." I say, looking between my mates nervously.

"Hey. What's wrong?" Eli asks, pushing my hair behind my ear.

"I killed all those people..." I say, my voice cracking with emotion.

"You had to, sunshine. Our whole pack would have died if you hadn't." Eli says gently. I nod, trying to let his words soothe me but I still feel overwhelming guilt.

"How did you do it? Where did you get all of that emotion from?" Eli asks and I look over at Jude, tears welling in my eyes.

"From Jude. Watching him sacrifice himself. For me."